Jad Chaaban

Original article published by the Lebanese Center for Policy Studies (LCPS) The foul odors of waste profiteering, corruption, and the illegal grab of public funds are back in the public eye. Not that they ever disappeared, really. One year after the onset of Lebanon’s waste crisis, the ruling junta is still trying to push unsustainable

A new report which reviews the existing literature on the situation of youth in Lebanon and benefits from opinion polls undertaken for the preparation of the UNDP Regional Arab Human Development Report. The report shows that although Lebanon has made progress towards human development in the past decades, major obstacles remain in creating enough job

A lot has been said and written about Beirut Madinati, and this is likely to continue for the months and years to come. The thoughts below are however primarily intended for the many volunteers and activists who joined the campaign at various stages, and who contributed to its success. Let me say first that I

‘Ten years from now, twenty years from now, you will see: Oil will bring us ruin … oil is the devil’s excrement. ’ This statement from Juan Pablo Pérez Alfonso, one of the people credited with founding OPEC, illustrates a common phenomenon linked to the discovery of hydrocarbon resources, which has been coined the ‘resource

The potential for a major discovery of offshore hydrocarbon resources in Lebanon raises concerns about its macroeconomic implications, specifically the Dutch disease phenomenon. This paper first explores whether the Lebanese economy has already been experiencing a Dutch disease episode since the early 1990s due to massive sustained capital inflows fueled by regional petro-dollar income. Using

Seminar held on Sep. 15, 2015: Presented the results of ongoing research which explores the relationship between Lebanese banks and the ruling class in the country. The project is part of a wider regional initiative entitled “The Political Economy Determinants of Private Sector Dynamism in the Middle East”, coordinated by the Economic Research Forum. The

Beirut, 27 August 2015 Open Letter to Mr. Bilal Hamad, President of the Municipal Council of Beirut Dear Mr. Hamad, I am writing to you as a Lebanese citizen and taxpayer, and a permanent resident of Beirut. I did not vote to elect you for the Municipal Council, because of our country’s twisted and sectarian

The Middle East and North African region is currently faced with one of the toughest socioeconomic challenges in its modern history: a ‘‘youth bulge’’ of almost 100 million young people, of which a quarter are unemployed. Between 40 and 50 million new jobs need to be created in the region’s countries over the next decade,

Lebanon’s current tax rules are both deeply unjust and ultimately counterproductive. They are unfair primarily because they rely so heavily on indirect taxation — mostly Valued Added Tax and taxes on consumption. On average, when you buy goods in Lebanon, 18 percent of the cost is tax. These indirect taxes make up 70 percent of

A study in 2013 on the potential costs and benefits to the Lebanese state if civil marriage was legalized. The results show that if civil marriage becomes a reality, the vast majority of citizens will be better off – not just socially, but also financially. Detailed results published here. Media coverage on the estimates available here.